Three Simple Keys to Better Teambuilding

In our last blog we discussed 3 common team building qualities that derail lasting impact: Competition (participants are pitted against each other), Passivity (participants don’t contribute anything of themselves), and Old News (participants don’t learn anything meaningful about each other). 

So now let’s talk about a different approach to team building. 

From                             To

Competition     ➡️        Connection

Passivity          ➡️       Participation

Old news         ➡️        New Insight 

Connection

In place of Competition which puts everyone’s defenses up, activities that lean into Connection are far more impactful in the long term. As the U.S. Surgeon General put it so well, “We spend more waking hours with our co-workers than we do with our families. But do they know what we really care about? Do they understand our values? Do they share in our triumphs and pains?” Team building activities that help broaden, deepen, and accelerate meaningful connection ensure that colleagues leave knowing what they all really care about, really understanding each other’s values, and genuinely able to share in each other's triumphs and pains. As fun as it may be, that sort of insight just doesn’t usually come from beating someone at mini-golf.

Participation

People love free things. But they don’t value them. The social scientist Dan Ariely, calls this the “Ikea Effect,” and his research has shown that people place a higher value on items they have invested effort or money into even if that investment is tiny. The act of contributing something of oneself creates a sense of ownership and investment, leading people to ascribe greater value to the item, regardless of the actual worth of the item. That’s why it’s so important that team building activities invite participants to contribute something of themselves. That way they have some skin in the game, and they know it matters that they are there. Everyone both gives and receives, learns and teaches, bows and applauds. The trick here is to make it so seamless and fun that no one feels forced into it, so that they get the benefits without noticing the cost. 

New Insight

Instead of forums like escape rooms and boat cruises that amplify familiar behaviors, look for activities that will help colleagues better understand the roots of those behaviors. Why is Pat such a people pleaser? Why is it so important for Charles to be in charge? 

One of the key things professional mediators look for when helping to resolve conflict is common ground. What shared traits, beliefs, goals, fears, etc. do people have in common that can be used to build a stronger, more productive connection. An effective team building activity helps people identify and articulate what drives their behaviors so that people who may have very different backgrounds, profiles, personalities, or behaviors can still find a bridge with which to easily build productive bonds. 

Ok. Those are all lovely sentiments, but how do you work such witchcraft?

We’ll talk about that in our next blog, or you can just ask us directly at hello@makebelieveworks.com